Crimea's down, Ukraine unstable, Latvia next?

So Mr. Putin seems to be making some bold moves lately. Is it just me, or is he becoming a Bond villain? Vladimir Putin has visions of grandeur, and it may not be purely narcissistic.  He wants to be in league with the other great 'ins', Stal and Len. He's trying to rebuild the former Soviet Union, and isn't making any bones about it. What's scarier is that his popularity, among Russians, is high. The Russian people, or at least a majority of, seem to support this dream of his. 

And fuck me if I'm crazy, but he's doing a better job of Cold War politics than Mikhael Gorbachev could have ever managed. Putin's just walking in and taking what he wants, damn the rest of the world. Gotta hand it to him, he's got flaws, but he's a strong leader. I really don't like most of his social policies, and certainly not his stances on LGBT equality, or women's rights. But he is a strong leader. 

And back on this side of the pond, Obama is powerless to stop him. Many people are faulting Obama right now for being weak, but let's face it, what more can he do? Nothing short of a full invasion is going to make a difference and nobody wants that. Russia's military is much stronger than it was at the turn of the century/millennium, and they'd be able to put up much more fight than the US wants to face. Not to mention Russia's inter-continental ballistic capabilities, nuclear or other. 

No, an invasion of Russia is not a solution. Obama is not weak, he's powerless. Weak suggests that he could do something and won't, which isn't the case. He can't do any more than he already has. If sanctions aren't enough to stop Putin, we may just have to sit back and watch him rebuild the union, because the alternative may be even worse. 

~Mahalo~